Trump Suggests His Immigration Policy Is "Hurting People" While Trying To Defend It

In a comment that left observers scratching their heads, it seemed like President Trump suggested his immigration policy is "hurting people" while addressing reporters from the White House on Thursday. In response to a question about the policies he's enacted as president, Trump said they're accomplishing "the reverse of what they're supposed to be doing."

Some speculated that Trump became confused about what he was discussing midway through his sentence, and unwittingly began talking about older immigration policies that he opposes. Bustle has reached out to the White House for clarification on what the president meant.

"Are your immigration policies cruel?" a reporter asked Trump while he was taking questions from the Oval office.

"No, I don't think they're cruel," the president said. "I think they're the opposite of cruel. They become cruel because they're so ridiculous, and it hurts people. It actually does the reverse of what they're supposed to be doing. But no, they're actually meant to be the opposite, and they're hurting people. They're really hurting people — a lot of people."

“I think we’re doing an incredible job,” Trump said. “We’re apprehending record numbers of people. But if we had border security and we had the wall — if we had a proper wall, which we’re building now as we speak. And we’re getting a lot more funding for it, as you know, in what we’re talking about, and the vote today. Whether it’s positive or not, I’m vetoing it."

In February, Trump declared a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, and claimed that doing so will allow him to free up funds to construct a wall. But on Thursday, the Senate voted in disapproval of Trump's declaration, with 12 Republicans joining all Senate Democrats to pass the resolution.